Chapter 28 028 The Scholar's Robe, the Feast of Favor
Although he still couldn't sleep in bed with his wife, she promised not to divorce him, and Xiao Yu finally got a good night's sleep that night.
As soon as he woke up in the morning, Chaosheng brought over the top scholar's robe that the Imperial Academy had sent after the results of the palace examination were announced the day before, and happily wanted to help his son put it on.
Xiao Yu glanced at it and said, "Change before we set off. Wear your everyday clothes for now."
The imperial banquet was to begin at noon, and the newly appointed scholars were required to gather outside the capital city at 9:00 AM. Xiao Yu could still stay at home for more than an hour, so there was no rush.
Chao Sheng had no choice but to carefully hang up the scholar's robe again and give the young master another set of ordinary clothes.
Xiao Yu finished packing and went to the Central Court.
Luo Fu was also dressed up. She spent most of yesterday at Wanhe Hall. Firstly, there was a happy occasion at the Marquis's residence that she had to attend, and secondly, her sister-in-law, Yang Yanzhen, told her a lot about what would happen after the palace examination. For example, the newly appointed scholars would wear the robes issued by the Imperial Academy to attend the Enrong Banquet. At the Enrong Banquet, the Emperor would directly bestow official titles upon the top three scholars (Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, and Tanhua). After the banquet, the top three scholars would wear imperial-bestowed hairpins and ride horses through the city streets...
Regardless of whether these things were related to Xiao Yu or not, Luo Fu listened with great interest and learned that Yang Yanzhen had already booked a private room in a restaurant along the route that previous top scholars would take when they paraded through the streets. In other words, when Xiao Yu was having a banquet in the palace, the women of the Xiao family would be having a banquet in the restaurant, and when Xiao Yu came out to parade through the streets, the women of the Xiao family would be waiting to watch him in the restaurant.
"Why didn't you change into your scholar's robe?" Luo Fu asked curiously when she saw Xiao Yu dressed in casual clothes.
In just two or three days, Xiao Yu had developed the habit of observing his wife's expression first. Seeing that although his wife had not regained her initial gentle smile, she was no longer cold and indifferent to him as an outsider, Xiao Yu was relieved and explained, "I was afraid of getting it dirty, so I changed it before leaving."
Luo Fu finally realized how much importance this man placed on the Emperor's banquet; otherwise, if Xiao Yu had entered the palace as casually as if he were home, Luo Fu would have been afraid again.
"Let's go, Mother said that all three branches of our family are going to Wanhetang for lunch this morning."
Xiao Yu nodded, watching his wife stand up, and then followed a step behind.
Luo Fu just kept walking, not unaware of Xiao Yu's gaze, but she wanted to show Xiao Yu how serious it was to anger her. So that if Xiao Yu still wanted to live a good life with her, he would have to consider her first before doing anything stupid, instead of dreaming that she would easily forgive him no matter what trouble he caused.
Only after they reached the entrance of Wanhetang did Luo Fu turn her head and smile at Xiao Yu: "This family banquet is to celebrate your passing the imperial examination with top honors, so why don't you start?"
Xiao Yu's heart warmed at the sight of her bright smile, which he hadn't seen in a long time, but then his wife immediately stopped smiling and glared at him as if she thought he was wasting her time.
Xiao Yu: "..."
He obediently walked ahead.
Inside the main room, Xiao Rong and his wife, as well as Xiao Hu and Xiao Lin and their wives, were all present, along with their eldest son, second son, third son, and Yingjie. Xiao Yu's fate had been unclear recently, and the elders had kept it from the children. Since Xiao Yu rarely left Shensi Hall, the children wouldn't worry about him if they didn't see him. Now that the storm had passed, the children only knew the good news of their third uncle becoming the top scholar in the imperial examinations. Before Xiao Yu even entered the room, the four siblings ran out and surrounded him.
Xiao Lin's four-year-old son said, "Third Uncle, you're amazing! I'll never complain about your demands again!"
Xiao Hu's six-year-old son asked, "When is Third Uncle going on the parade? Can I come with him?"
Sanlang and Yingjie were still young, each holding onto one of their uncle's legs, just tilting their heads back and laughing innocently. As they laughed, Sanlang sneezed loudly, spraying the whole thing all over their uncle.
Xiao Yu: "..."
Yang Yanzhen gave Sanlang's wet nurse a timely wink, and the wet nurse bent down and steadily carried Sanlang, who had recently caught a chill.
Xiao Yu picked up the youngest Yingjie, first encouraging Erlang to study hard, then patted Dalang's head: "I can't take you with me. If you want to parade through the streets, you can take the exam yourself when you grow up."
Although my eldest brother isn't academically inclined, my sister-in-law comes from a scholarly family, and the Yang family has countless books. As long as my eldest brother puts in the effort, there is still hope.
The eldest son, who was focused on learning martial arts, secretly glared at his wicked third uncle, who always brought up the most awkward topics.
Breakfast was eaten quietly as usual. After the children left, Xiao Rong suppressed his temper and instructed his youngest son: "When you go to the palace and see the Emperor, remember to kowtow and thank him for his great kindness. No matter what the Emperor says, you must not utter any more arrogant words, or you will be imprisoned again and no one can save you."
Xiao Yu glanced at his wife out of the corner of his eye and responded respectfully.
Xiao Rong had to go to his post. Before leaving, he glanced at his son and frowned, saying, "Change into your scholar's robes as soon as possible and set off early. Don't take advantage of the fact that you live close to the capital to arrive last."
Xiao Yu nodded.
After the banquet, Luo Fu accompanied Xiao Yu back to Shensi Hall. The couple stayed in their respective courtyards. Around 11:00 AM, Luo Fu came to the front courtyard and saw Xiao Yu sitting in the main room reading a book, seemingly having forgotten the time. Luo Fu said angrily, "Why haven't you changed your clothes yet?"
Chao Sheng, who was waiting to the side, hesitated to speak.
Xiao Yu gestured for him to step back before walking up to his wife and explaining in a low voice, "I think I will only wear this scholar's robe once in my life. I'm clumsy with clothes, so I would like to trouble you to help me change into it."
Xiao Sanlang, who dared to speak frankly and defy authority, kept his boldness and bluntness to himself. He remained as handsome as a bamboo stalk, his clear and bright eyes gazing at her closely as he uttered those shameless words of love. Luo Fu's initial anger was extinguished by him, and her cheeks flushed as they had been on those nights.
With business to attend to, Luo Fu bypassed him and went into the inner room. Xiao Yu smiled and followed.
The Imperial Academy issued white wide-sleeved robes to the second and third-ranked Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), while the top three Jinshi were issued dark blue wide-sleeved robes to distinguish them. They also received a Jinshi hat of the same style.
The robe was merely made of slightly finer fabric, nothing special, but this one was for the top scholar, and Luo Fu, holding it in her hands, felt a sense of pride. According to her sister-in-law, Xiao Yu was the first scholar in the dynasty to achieve the highest honors in all three levels of the imperial examinations, a figure destined to be recorded in the national history. His remonstrance during the palace examination would further enhance his reputation.
If Luo Fu were still an ordinary citizen with no connection to history, she wouldn't consider being recorded in history a great honor. But if she were given the opportunity to be included in history by historians, Luo Fu would be excited and happy for a good name and would avoid a bad one at all costs.
She is still Xiao Yu's wife and will receive the same honor as his fame.
After fastening her robe and fastening her jade belt, Luo Fu held up the black scholar's hat with both hands and slowly placed it on Xiao Yu's head.
When Xiao Yu stood up straight, Luo Fu also stood a few steps away, deliberately avoiding looking at Xiao Yu's face, only admiring his dashing appearance. This man was simply too handsome, possessing both refined and upright qualities. As the son of a marquis and a top scholar, riding around the capital, there would surely be noble ladies willing to marry him even knowing he was daring to defy authority.
Xiao Yu saw admiration and... dissatisfaction in his wife's eyes one after another?
"Is something wrong?" Xiao Yu began to examine himself. There was nothing unusual in front of him, so he turned around to look behind him.
Just then, a gentle breeze suddenly rose in the quiet room, and then a pair of hands tightly embraced him.
Xiao Yu looked at his chest in surprise, his hands frozen in mid-air.
Luo Fu pressed herself against his scholar's robe, her hands resting on his lower back. Just as Xiao Yu realized what was happening and tried to hug her back, Luo Fu suddenly tightened her right hand, pinching a piece of flesh on his waist hard: "I like that you became the top scholar and achieved success, but I don't like that you caused trouble and made me worry. If there's a next time, even if you come back safely afterward, don't expect me to help you undress again."
Xiao Yu gasped in pain and said to the roof, "I will remember your teachings, Madam, I will never forget them!"
Luo Fu snorted, let go of him, and then went around to the back to smooth out the wrinkles that she had twisted out of Xiao Yu's skin.
Xiao Yu didn't dare to move, fearing that his wife would hit him again.
.
Outside the imperial city, urged by his wife and mother, Xiao Yu arrived 25 minutes early. From a distance, he could see the long queue on the left side of Duanmen Gate. Xiao Yu tactfully got off the carriage, straightened his robes, and walked calmly toward the queue.
Of the nearly two hundred successful candidates, only three wore dark blue robes. Among them, the second-ranked candidate Cui Han and the third-ranked candidate Pei Xingshu had already arrived, and the newcomer must be the top-ranked candidate Xiao Yu.
The two rows of scholars stopped talking and all stared at Xiao Yu, who was getting closer and closer. Among these newly appointed scholars who had not yet entered officialdom, almost none of them had the connections to know what Xiao Yu had written on his palace examination paper. They could only speculate among themselves. Some admired Xiao Yu's courage, while others mocked him, saying that he only dared to be unconventional in the palace examination because he had a marquis father.
Regardless of what others thought, saw, or discussed, Xiao Yu approached with a calm expression, bowed to all his fellow students, and naturally took the first empty seat in the first row.
Cui Han, the second-place scholar, was thirty-five years old. Normally, a scholar of this age, especially a first-class scholar, could still be praised for his youth and talent. However, with a twenty-eight-year-old third-place scholar on his right and a twenty-three-year-old top scholar on his left, Cui Han couldn't help but feel annoyed at himself for being so incompetent and for not being able to achieve such success in his early twenties.
What made Cui Han even more jealous was that Xiao Yu was a young master of a marquis's mansion with a grand and imposing residence, while Pei Xingshu from Yangzhou was so wealthy that he had rented a house in the capital six months in advance, where he had a beautiful wife who took good care of him and provided him with a beautiful companion. By the way, the two of them were also brothers-in-law!
Noticing that Pei Xingshu and Xiao Yu were both looking in his direction, actually wanting to exchange glances or have a conversation over his shoulder, Cui Han almost wanted to give up his seat.
While waiting, officials from the Ministry of Rites checked all the candidates again to see if they had brought any illicit goods. When the time came, the chief examiner, Xia Qiyuan, the Minister of Rites, led everyone into the palace and walked along the majestic and wide palace road toward the Taiji Hall.
Left Chancellor Yang Sheng and Duke Li Gong led a group of civil and military officials to stand at the foot of the stone steps in front of the palace, waiting with the scholars to welcome the emperor.
After the scholars had stopped and stood in their positions, Xia Qiyuan quickly walked to the ranks of the civil officials, where the Left Chancellor was located.
Xiao Rong, though not a high-ranking official, held the title of First-Class Marquis, thus qualifying him to attend the Imperial Banquet. As he watched his third son lead a group of white-robed scholars over, and felt the gazes of other dukes, marquises, and military officers recognizing his third son and turning to him, Xiao Rong subconsciously straightened his chest. Despite his anger, his third son ultimately made him proud!
After another quarter of an hour, Emperor Yongcheng finally arrived, followed by four princes.
Before each imperial banquet, Emperor Yongcheng would first praise and encourage the newly appointed scholars, and then bestow official titles upon the top-ranking scholars. This year was different; all the candidates in the palace examination had witnessed Emperor Yongcheng punish one candidate, so he had to give everyone a reasonable explanation for this matter.
Emperor Yongcheng gave Eunuch Ma a wink.
Eunuch Ma nodded, holding a tray in both hands, and quickly descended the steps to stop in front of Xiao Yu.
Emperor Yongcheng pursed his lips and looked down at Xiao Yu, saying, "On the day of the palace examination, I was so angry after reading Xiao Yu's answer sheet that I imprisoned him. Later, I appointed Xiao Yu as the top scholar. I'm sure you are all curious about what Xiao Yu wrote. So, Xiao Yu, you will personally read your top scholar's paper aloud and clear up the doubts for all the civil and military officials and the newly appointed scholars!"
If he dared to appoint Xiao Yu as the top scholar, wasn't he afraid to let the world know about Xiao Yu's veiled and sarcastic remarks about him?
-----------------------
Author's Note: Xiao Rong: Quick, help me up, I'm about to faint! [Clown]
100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow~
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com